Pectoral icon depicting the Virgin of the Sign., 19th century

Bronze casting with polychrome enamels

Height × width: 7 × 4.5 cm Weight: 64.1 g.

The Mother of God is depicted in an attitude of prayer, with her arms raised, while before her, upon her breast, appears the image of Christ Emmanuel, a powerful symbol of the Incarnation of the Word, dear to the tradition of the Old Believers. In the spaces formed between the sides of the square framing the Virgin and the corners of the icon itself are placed the symbols of the four Evangelists. Finally, on the small tab that conceals the suspension ring is depicted the Mandylion of Edessa, the acheiropoieton image of Christ’s face, which seals the entire work as a sign of protection and supreme divine authority.